Sheeeee-it: The Bonus Tracks of MIAMTEC

After the The Emancipation of Mimi was released upon the world in 2005, there was much rejoicing. The first three tracks of the album all received great radio play, and "We Belong Together" became a modern-day classic and Mims's 16th #1 on US charts. Seemingly unable to stop the flow of chart-friendly creativity at this point, she gifted listeners with "Don't Forget About Us" as a single shortly thereafter, and it, too, reached #1. To capitalize upon this new hit and continue riding the wave of TEOM, the "Platinum" edition of TEOM was released seven months later with bonus tracks "Don't Forget About Us" and some other goodies, including personal favorite "Makin' It Last All Night (What It Do) ft. Jermaine Dupri," which contains this memorable contribution from JD:

"Listen I got stacks like
The international house of pancakes
Your man great, got more Rovers then a Land makes
I make hits and I don't care about your damn hates
Can't stop doing it , I just do it for the fans' sake"

Here was an example of bonus tracks par excellence. Unfortunately, MIAMTEC is a departure from this winning model. Problem #1: a "regular" and "deluxe edition" were pushed out on the same day. What's the strategy there? Is anyone really not going to spring an extra buck or two to get three more songs? And not that I'm a proponent of such machinations, but why not wait a few months to release the deluxe edition and make us all buy it again? It's like how they keep releasing editions of Twin Peaks; first you have to have the pilot episode included, then you have to have Fire Walk With Me. I know you can all relate to this.

Anyway, the three bonus tracks that appear on MIAMTEC are solid: the aforementioned "Betcha Gon' Know" with R. Kelly; "It's a Wrap" with Mary J. Blige (who of course has a great track of her own by the same name); and "The Art of Letting Go." Why the latter was relegated to a bonus track I have no idea. Seems like you could easily sub it out for one of the weaker tracks like "Meteorite" and strengthen the core of the album.

"It's a Wrap" with Mary J. Blige is a pure delight. While Mims unfortunately didn't contribute any new vocals, MJB takes over the song with authority, telling Mims -- as "a friend and a fan" -- that she needs to drop that man. It's a tribute to the quality of the source material that MJB on the second verse lends a different but equally good spin to the song. Only problem now is, there are TWO tracks on MIAMTEC that begin with the sound of a champagne bottle being opened and poured. Sheeeee-it...